Head lamp for vehicles



July 5, 1938.

G. TRIPPE 2,123,125

HEAD LAMP FOR VEHICLES Filed NOV. 11, 1936 INVENTOR. Grab am W/ 'O Je BYM%%%-" Patented July 5, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Graham Trlppe,Chicago, Ill.

Application November 11, 1936, Serial No. 110,324

6 Claims.

My invention relates to headlamps for vehicles.

Among the objects of my invention are to provide a construction wherebythe reflectors of the lamp are resiliently positioned so that they arefull floating for both horizontal and vertical movement, therebyabsorbing shock and greatly lengthening the life of the lamp bulb; tocreate a structure adapted to seal the interior of the head lamp againstmoisture, dust, dirt and tarnish, and which when once inserted will notbe subject to rattling or accidental removal by vibration or shock; tosupply a construction for the adjustment and positioning of the housingin any desired position; to provide an adjustable connection whereby myhead lamp may be attached to a vehicle in any desired position; tosupply such a connection that will have'a construction that my head lampwill be theft proof, and such other objects, advantages and capabilitiesas will later more fully appear and which are inherently possessed by myinvention.

While I have shown in the accompanying drawing a preferred embodiment ofmy invention, yet I wish it understood that the same is susceptible ofmodification and change without departing from the spirit of myinvention.

Fig. 1 is a side sectional view of my head lamp; Fig. 2 is a front viewof the same; Figs. 3 and 4 are detail views of my peculiarly shaped andformed wrench; Fig. 5 is a detail view of the preferred form of myresilient member; and Fig. 6 is a detail view of the adjusting means formy lamp.

Referring moreparticularly to the embodiment selected to illustrate myinvention, it comprises a head lamp I0 having a housing II, a lens I2,an electric light bulb I3 connected to an electrical source of supplyand a reflector" I4. A plurality of resilientmembers I5 are attached byrivets It or any other suitable means to the housing II and saidresilient members arespaced from each other so that their ends I'Icontact the back of the reflector I4 at various points, said ends of theresilient members thus acting as a cradle for the reflector. I havefound in practice that three resilient members spaced substantiallyequi-distant form suiflcient contact on the back of the reflector, butthe exact number of resilient members may be varied without departingfrom the spirit of my invention. My reflector so positioned is thus fullfloating and is adapted to move either horizontally or vertically orboth simultaneously. Upon the vehicle to which my head lamp is attachedhitting abumrr or a hole to cause vertical movement, my reflector alsomoves vertically to absorb the shock and thus greatly increases the lifeof the electric light bulb.

Since the ends ll of the resilient members are sharpened they are usefulin positioning the re- (Cl. 24.0-41.5) m

flector. The sharpened ends tend to dig into the back of the reflectorand thus permanently hold the reflector from twisting or turning afterits assembly in place. a

After my reflector I4 has been positioned, the bulb [3 connected, thelens I2 is put in place with its inner peripheral edges resting a'gainstfelt gasket I8 attached to the outer flanged edge 49 of the reflectorI4. A ring I9 preferably made in one piece has a V-shaped opening 20with the wider part of the V on the inner edge and the narrower part onthe outer edge. Said ring I9 has a slightoutward tapering flange 2Icontinuing around its outer edge, which flange seats inside the outeredge of the housing which is slightly curved to receive said flange. Thering I9 holds in its substantially hollow grooved interior a gasket 22of rubber or the like, which is held therein by adhesive or othersuitable means. The lens I2 is held between this gasket 22 on theoutside'and gasket I8 on the inside. Once positioned during assembly,the ring I9 is contracted together with the V-shaped opening 20 adjacentthe top of the assembly so that cap 23 may be placed over said ring I9covering said V-shaped opening 20. Said cap 23 has a pair of roundedgrooves 44 to receive the opposite ends of the ring I9, said grooves 44being separated by a wedge 45 tapering outwardly toward the bottom.Said. cap continues backwardly following the contour of the housing I I,and is removably positioned to said housing by a hand screw 24 or thelike. Once the cap 23 is placed over the ring IS the ring may expand soas to insure a tight fit against the gasket 22 and thehousing II, andseal the inside of my lamp Ill against moisture, dirt, dust and tarnish.

Adjacent the bottom of my housing I I a flange socket 25 is fixed byrivets or other suitable means. Said flange.25 has at its forwardportion an upwardly curved lip 26 to receive the central lower portionof the lens retaining ring I9. This lip 26' acts as,a guide and holdingmember for the ring I9.during the operation of assembling when the ringis being contracted and the cap 23 is being placed thereon. Later thelip acts as a secondary support for the ring I9. Said flange socket 25hassubstantially at its center a concaved portion .21 having an aperture28 to receive a bolt of ball washer 29. Said ball washer is of a smalleror equal radius than the" radius of the concaved portion 2-1, and its,edges are adapted when so positioned to contact the concaved portion.The ball, washer 29 may be adjusted by turning of bolt 30 sothat theedges of said washer dig into the concaved portion 21 of flange socket25 so as to securely hold the lamp III in any desired position to whichit has been placed by the user. This construction permits easy and exactpositioning of my lamp without the creeping that has heretofore beenpresent when adjustment wasbeing made. My construction also insures apermanent positioning once the lamp has been adjusted into place.

My supporting arm II has an upper curved portion 32 adapted to fit underthe c'oncaved portion 21 of the flange socket 25. passes through theupper concaved portion 32 of the supporting arm 3i, and the saidconcaved portion extends downwardly on either side of nut 41 of bolt 30forming a recess ii so that said nut may only be reached and turned byhead 43 of my wrench 32 having the peculiar shape necessary to enable itto pass into said recess 3|, thus making said adjustment theft proof.The supporting arm continues with a downwardlyand outwardly curved shank33 to end in a serrated bottom 34. The shank 33 has a hollowed outportion 35 towards its lower end so that the head 36 of the bolt 31cannot be reached and turned except by head 43 of wrench 32 peculiarlyshaped to reach into said hollowed out portion 35 of the shank 33. Thisconstruction again makes the same theft proof as it cannot be tamperedwith by the usual run of wrenches, but requires a peculiar tool createdfor the particular job. Said bolt 31 secures said supporting arm 3| to astandard 38, there being teeth 39 on the standard adapted to engage theserrated bottom 34. The standard 38 is attached to the bumper or othersuitable supporting member 40 of a vehicle by means of a clamping plate43 held by a pair of spaced bolts ll. Said bolts are positioned inrecesses in said plate 43 and are surrounded on three sides of the wallof the plate so that they are accessible only by head 43 of mypeculiarly shaped wrench 32, adapted to enter into said recess forturning said bolts. This is the third theft proof feature of my lamp.inasmuch as the supporting arm is movable in a horizontal plane in anydirection and the lamp housing in any direction horizontal or verticalby swinging the supporting arm in any desired direction, the lamp itselfmay be placed wherever desired on the vehicle to protect it fromaccident and yet to give most eflicient service. A set screw 42 cutsthrough the enamel of the bumper 40 to permit proper electrical contactand to obta'n a maximum flow of electricity.

Having thus described my invention,

I claim:

1. In combination with a head lamp for vehicles having a, housing, asource of light, a reflector having a gasket around its outer edge, anda lens, a construction comprising a lens retaining ring having aV-shaped opening and a grooved portion holding a gasket, said lens beingheld between said gaskets, the V-shaped opening of said ring positionedsubstantially adjacent the top portion of said housing, and a capremovably fixed to the top portion of said housing placed over saidV-shaped opening for holding the ring in place and permitting it toexpand to form a seal against the askets and the housing.

2. In combination wi h a head lamp for vehicles having a housing, asource of light, a refiector having a gasket around'its outer edge, anda lens, a construction comprising a lens retaining ring having aV-shaped opening and a grooved portion holding a gasket, said lens beingheld between said gaskets, said ring having The bolt ll an inwardlytapering flange on its outer edge, said flange contacting the inside ofthe outer edge of said housing. the V-shaped opening of said ringpositioned substantially adjacent the top portion of said housing, a capremovably flxed to the top portion of said housing placed over saidV-shaped opening for holding the ring in place and permitting it toexpand to form a seal against the gaskets and the housing.

3. A head lamp for vehicles comprising a housing, a source of light, areflector having a gasket around its outer edge, a lens, a lensretaining ring having a V-shaped opening and a groove holding a gasket,said lens being held between said gaskets, a cap attached to saidhousing for closing over the V-shaped opening of said ring and forholding said ring against said housing, and a flange attached to saidhousing having a lip. adapted to hold and position one part of said ringso that said cap may be positioned over another'part of said ring.

4. A head lamp for vehicles comprising a housing, a source of light, areflector having a gasket around its outer edge, a lens, a lensretaining ring having a V-shaped opening and a. groove holding a gasket,said lens being held between 'said gasketsfa cap attached to saidhousing adjacent the top portion thereof for closing over the V-shapedopening of said ring-and for bolding said ring against said housing, anda flange attached to said housing adjacent the bottom portion thereofand having a lip adapted to hold and position the bottom of said ring sothat said cap may be positioned over the top of said ring.

5. In a head lamp for a vehicle, a housing, a reflector, an electriclight bulb connected through said reflector to an electrical source ofsupply, a trio of resilient members, each of said resilient membershaving a plurality of bends, a central portion and a pair of spacedsharp ends, each of said resilient members attached at its centralportion to said housing, said resilient members spaced substantiallyequidistant to form a cradle, said reflector floatingly supported onsaid cradle so as to provide both vertical and horizontal movement forabsorbing shock passed to the vehicle and giving longer life to theelectric light bulb, said sharp ends of said resilient members digginginto the back of said reflector so as to position said reflector andhold it from turning and twisting out of position.

6. In combination with a head lamp for vehicles having a housing, asource of light, a reflector having a gasket around its outer edge, anda lens, a construction comprising a lens retaining ring having aV-shaped opening and a grooved portion holding a gasket, said lens beingheld between said gaskets, the V-shaped opening of said ring positionedsubstantially adjacent the top portion of said housing, a cap removablyfixed to the top portion of said housing placed over said V-shapedopening for holding the ring in place and permitting it to expand toform a seal against the gaskets and the housing, and a flange attachedto said housing adjacent the bottom portion thereof and having a lipadapted to hold and position the bottom of said ring so that said capmay be positioned over the top of said ring.

. GRAHAM 'I'RIPPE.

